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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Study shows a dismal 1.6% elderly are covered by health insurance plans -Sushmi Dey

Study shows a dismal 1.6% elderly are covered by health insurance plans -Sushmi Dey

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published Published on Dec 6, 2014   modified Modified on Dec 6, 2014
-The Times of India

NEW DELHI: Less than two of every 100 senior citizens in India are covered under public and private health insurance. This even as the population of elderly people is growing significantly and is forecast to hit almost 300 million in around two decades.

The elderly population, aged more than 60 years, is projected to constitute 18.3% of the total population in 2050, up from 7.7% in 2010, according to the United Nations. Their population will grow to 112 million by 2015 from 72 million in 2000.

However, health insurance penetration among this population remains significantly low in India. A recent study by Deloitte shows merely 1.6% of elderly population is covered under public and private insurance schemes. "This low insurance penetration amongst the elderly is further exacerbated by inadequate coverage provided to the insured, in terms of both amount and type of services covered," the report states.

Experts point out the overall health insurance penetration in India is as it is low at 26%, as compared to other countries. According to World Bank estimates, India's healthcare spending as a percentage of GDP is among the lowest in emerging markets. During 2012, India spent a total of around 4% of GDP on healthcare, whereas Brazil and China spent 9.3% and 5.4%, respectively.

Currently, there is a lack of emphasis on insurance cover for the elderly. Most private players do not want to cover the elderly in their plans because the expenditures are high as compared to premiums earned, experts say. Restrictive conditions further reduce the attractiveness of existing options. For instance, several policies do not cover care for common age-related ailments such as cataract or asthma. Insurance schemes often also have pre-existing conditions as eligibility restrictions or require an additional premium to cover such people.

"Health financing, a particularly important factor in the case of the elderly, lacks focus on the specific needs of the elderly, with only a few insurance offering covering elderly care with the flexibility and comprehensiveness that is required. As a result, a high component of elderly care is being financed out of pocket," says Charu Sehgal, senior director -healthcare consulting, Deloitte India.

According to a FICCI study, government spending on elderly care amounted to an investment of around $28 million under the national programme for health care of the elderly by health ministry during 2011. Whereas, the total health insurance premium raised from elderly for the same year was close to $ 250 million. As against these, the total elderly expenditure stood at around $7.4 billion. Thus, most of the elderly care was financed out-of-pocket.

However, the demand for health insurance among elderly is significantly increasing because of disease prevalence with age. Health expenditure for elderly is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 21.9% till 2020, this is against a growth of 17.6% in the total health expenditure.


The Times of India, 6 December, 2014, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Study-shows-a-dismal-1-6-elderly-are-covered-by-health-insurance-plans/articleshow/45391831.cms


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